Sunday 2 September 2012 15.44 EDT
First published on Sunday 2 September 2012 15.44 EDT

Democrats opened a fresh offensive on Mitt Romney's foreign policy Sunday, painting the Republican White House hopeful as a war-monger looking to take the US into further Middle East conflicts.

Campaigning in Pennsylvania, vice president Joe Biden attacked Mr Romney's international agenda as laid out in last week's convention address, suggesting that it put him out of step with the US's priorities overseas.

"He said it was a mistake to end the war in Iraq and bring all of our warriors home. He said it was a mistake to set an end date for our warriors in Afghanistan and bring them home," Biden told supporters.

He added: "He implies by the speech that he's ready to go to war in Syria and Iran."

The charge is a serious one in a country that has become less enthusiastic over foreign intervention as a result of more than a decade of conflict. It also suggests that Democratic strategists believe Obama can bolster his campaign by running on foreign policy, an area in which they believe he has a clear edge over his opponent.

In past campaigns, the issue of international affairs has often been seen as a strong area for the Republicans.

But Obama supporters point towards the end of conflict in Iraq and troop draw down in Afghanistan, as well as the assassination of terror chief Osama bin Laden, as evidence of the current administration's success overseas.

In last week's speech in Tampa, Romney sought primarily to turn the screw on Obama over the issue of the economy.

But in the parts of the address dedicated to foreign policy, the Republican presidential candidate struck out at the White House for not coming down hard enough on Iran, stating that "every American is less secure today" as a result of a perceived soft line on Tehran.

He also criticised Obama directly for distancing America from traditional Middle East ally Israel and for his dealings with Russian president Vladimir Putin.

"Under my presidency, our friends will see more loyalty and Mr Putin will see a little less flexibility and more backbone," Romney told the party faithful.

On the stump today, Biden hit back saying: "He wants to move from co-operation to confrontation with Putin's Russia. And these guys say the president's out of touch?"

In a broad attack taking in criticism of Romney's personal tax arrangements, the vice president continued, according to a local ABC affiliate: "Out of touch? Swiss bank account, untold millions in the Cayman Islands. Who's out of touch, man?"

Painting Romney's agenda as an out-of-date blueprint for America is becoming a theme of the Obama team's attack in the election run-up.

Yesterday in the key battleground state of Iowa, a fired-up Obama called on American voters to back his plan to take the country forward.

"We have come too far to turn back now," he said at the start of a four-day tour of swing states leading up to a crucial set-piece address at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina.

He contrasted his platform with that of the Republican White House ticket, which he said was "better suited for the last century".

Romney didn't offer "a single new idea" during Thursday's address in Tampa, the president said, adding: "It was a rerun. We'd seen it all before, you might as well have watched it on a black-and-white TV."

For his part, the Republican candidate - who delivered a competent speech in Tampa – spoke with more passion than is sometimes expected of him while campaigning Saturday in Ohio.

To cheers of "Mitt, Mitt, Mitt", he promised to deliver a "winning season" for America, pledging that under his watch "America is going to come roaring back".

He also tried to frame himself as a "unity" candidate, lambasting his opponent for "divisiveness and bitterness" on the campaign trail. "I will bring us together," he told would-be voters in the state.

But the Romney camp received a blow of sorts over the weekend with the suggestion that any bump resulting from the party's convention looks to be short lived.

Having opened up a poll lead of a couple of points in the immediate aftermath of the Tampa get-together, a Reuters/Ipsos survey of voting intention put Obama back in front on Saturday night by the slenderest of margins – 44% to Romney's 43%.

As the run-down to the 6 November national ballot creeps closer, the Republicans are increasingly tying their hopes to focusing the electorate on a sluggish economic and a job market in which some 8.3% remain frozen out. They also have a clear edge when it comes to the money they have at their disposal to spend on attack ads.

In contrast, Obama's strategists appear to be opting for a wider attack on the Republican Party's conservative social agenda and Romney's perceived weakness on matters of foreign policy. The addition of Paul Ryan to the White House ticket, as Romney's vice presidential pick, has opened up an additional avenue of attack for Obama along the lines of safeguarding Medicare from the Wisconsin representative's plan to turn the seniors' healthcare safety net into a voucher system.

Moreover, at this week's convention, aides to the president will be hoping to counter some of the harm that could be inflicted as a result of their war-chest shortfall, by means of an Obama speech that could re-ignite a base that is seen to be less enthusiastic than it was four years ago.